Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated $LGND Stock Position Decreased by Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC

Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC cut its position in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated (NASDAQ:LGND) by 1.0% in the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 16,792 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock after selling 167 shares during the period. Linden Thomas Advisory Services LLC owned 0.09% of Ligand Pharmaceuticals worth $1,909,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in LGND. Maseco LLP purchased a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter worth about $31,000. GAMMA Investing LLC raised its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 68.5% during the 1st quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 593 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $62,000 after purchasing an additional 241 shares in the last quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. raised its stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals by 14.1% during the 2nd quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 745 shares of the biotechnology company’s stock worth $85,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Contravisory Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 2nd quarter worth about $257,000. Finally, Pacer Advisors Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals during the 1st quarter worth about $265,000. 91.28% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Activity at Ligand Pharmaceuticals

In other news, Director John W. Kozarich sold 467 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, October 1st. The stock was sold at an average price of $179.44, for a total transaction of $83,798.48. Following the sale, the director owned 45,055 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $8,084,669.20. This trade represents a 1.03% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, Director Jason Aryeh sold 10,000 shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, September 23rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $170.81, for a total value of $1,708,100.00. Following the sale, the director directly owned 69,289 shares in the company, valued at $11,835,254.09. The trade was a 12.61% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders have sold a total of 11,401 shares of company stock worth $1,929,262 in the last three months. 7.00% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Royal Bank Of Canada raised their price target on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $155.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “outperform” rating in a research note on Friday, August 8th. Benchmark increased their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $160.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, September 2nd. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d+)” rating on shares of Ligand Pharmaceuticals in a report on Saturday. Wall Street Zen raised Ligand Pharmaceuticals from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Saturday, August 9th. Finally, HC Wainwright increased their price objective on Ligand Pharmaceuticals from $157.00 to $206.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, August 28th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, Ligand Pharmaceuticals currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $176.50.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Stock Up 0.9%

LGND opened at $186.98 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $3.66 billion, a P/E ratio of -46.75 and a beta of 0.95. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $171.07 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $135.55. Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated has a 12-month low of $93.58 and a 12-month high of $189.60.

Ligand Pharmaceuticals (NASDAQ:LGND) last released its earnings results on Thursday, August 7th. The biotechnology company reported $1.60 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.54 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $47.63 million for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $43.87 million. Ligand Pharmaceuticals had a negative return on equity of 9.21% and a negative net margin of 40.44%.The company’s revenue was up 14.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.40 EPS. Ligand Pharmaceuticals has set its FY 2025 guidance at 6.700-7.000 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated will post 1.73 earnings per share for the current year.

About Ligand Pharmaceuticals

Ligand Pharmaceuticals Incorporated, a biopharmaceutical company, engages in the development and licensing of biopharmaceutical assets worldwide. Its commercial programs include Kyprolis and Evomela, which are used to treat multiple myeloma; Rylaze, a recombinant erwinia asparaginase for the treatment of acute lymphoblastic leukemia or lymphoblastic lymphoma in adult and pediatric patients; Filspari, a dual endothelin and angiotensin II receptor antagonist in development for rare kidney diseases and non-immunosuppressive treatment indicated for immunoglobulin A nephropathy; Teriparatide injection product for osteoporosis; Vaxneuvance for the prevention of invasive disease caused by streptococcus pneumoniae serotypes; and Pneumosil, a pneumococcal conjugate vaccine to help fight against pneumococcal pneumonia among children.